Carrying on the Work of the Gospel Part 2

Pastor Mike will be speaking on Carrying on the Work of the Gospel Part 2. He will be reading out of Acts 20:17-24

Do you serve God as long as he’ll answer your prayers the way you want them? Do you serve God as long as he makes your life comfortable and convenient? But what if he allows the storms to come? And I know we can serve God when he gives, but what if he takes away? Hello.

This is pastor Mike Sanders from the Open Door Church, and we wanna welcome you to Hope Worth Having. And we’re excited about what God has for us today, so thank you for tuning in with us. We’re gonna be back in Acts chapter 20 verses 17 through 24, and we’re learning about carrying on the work of the gospel. What an important task that is. So I want you to join us as we continue to learn how to carry on the work of the gospel.

You don’t always have to have the last word my mother used to say to me. Well, that’s good advice in the church too is that it’s okay that we might disagree. Some of you are very upset. It’s too cold in here. What are we gonna do about it?

Well, just let the pastor start preaching, it’ll warm up. We’ll be okay, it’s not the end of the world. Let’s just give him to God and tell the Lord to straighten him out. We walk with humility. In all your relationships, are you humble?

In all of our relationships, are we willing to be humble to God and are we willing to say, Lord, I may not always understand and I may not always agree, but I certainly don’t wanna be prideful, arrogant, unteachable, and unwilling to work together as a team. I think what made the apostle so effective for God is his humbleness before God. As he served with the elders, as he served with the churches, as he worked within the different people of God, that he was able to walk in humility with God’s people. The second characteristic on helping us to carry out the work of the gospel is compassion. I’m back in verse 19.

And we note in chapter 20 of verse 19, he says, serving the lord not only with all humility, but with many tears and trials. Serving the lord with many tears, we jump down to chapter 20 verse 31 and you see he says, therefore, watch and remember for three years, I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with what? Tears. He served with many tears. Let me tell you what’ll happen as you’re serving God, as you go through life, it’s easy to become apathetic, it’s easy to become indifferent.

Towards others, towards God, the challenges, the problems of life can make you to where you don’t wanna have a tender heart. That you wanna build as many walls as you can in your heart and protect yourself from the pain and the hurts. The apostle says, no. I wanna be different. I want you to know that I was a man who served the lord with many tears.

Now that’s not a quality we’re all looking and desiring, but it’s a reflection of his heart that he was compassionate. It was the compassion that the apostle had that drove him to minister night and day. You saw that in verse 31. Night and day, he was very compassionate. You can tell a lot about a person by what they celebrate over and what they cry over.

Are you with me? Because those emotions, we could call them the extremes of emotions, reflect our heart. What is it that we celebrate over? Some people get super excited over the fact that their tomatoes are growing in their garden. Some people might get super excited about a sports team winning, and I’m not against any of that.

Don’t misunderstand me. But what do you celebrate? Do you celebrate when people come to Christ? Do you get excited when people are growing in their faith? Are you more touched in your heart with tears of joy about the fact that God is working in the heart of your children or your grandchildren or that someone is dedicating their life to full time ministry.

These are tears of joy. We don’t know. Paul didn’t tell us whether they were tears of joy or tears of sadness, but we do know that he served with many tears. What were the things that he was compassionate about? Well, we know in Romans nine that Paul wept over the loss.

He was broken to tears over those who did not know Jesus Christ as their lord and savior. When is the last time in your prayers to god praying for the unchurched, praying for those who do not know Christ, that tears streamed down your cheeks because you were so burdened that they would be saved? When is the last time that when you rose from your kneeling of praying for your loved ones or your neighbor that does not know Christ, that there were drops of tears left on the floor or on your pillow? When is the last time that you were so burdened to see people come to Christ that you wept with many tears. There are many things that we might weep about, but certainly shouldn’t God’s people weep for the lost.

We need a revival and what we need a revival in is God’s people praying and weeping with many tears. Not only did the apostle weep for the lost, but he, according to first Corinthians two four, he wept for the immature. Spiritual growth and therefore their spiritual formation was kind of just stalled. Maybe perhaps they were even backsliding or getting involved in things that were hurting their walk with Christ. And he was burden for the immature.

I want to challenge you and to encourage you to be a person that as we survey our church family, as we look and say, where are our brothers and sisters in Christ, that if we sense that maybe they have become apathetic or indifferent to the gospel or to one another or even to the Lord, that we would have a burden for them, that we would pray them back into fellowship with God’s people. Amen? That many tears would be shed, that they would come and rededicate, and that their hearts would be revived, and they would be spiritually awakened anew in their passion for Jesus Christ. Paul not only prayed for the lost and he not only prayed for the immature, but he prayed for the church that was endangered by false teachers. We see that.

You could take time to read on your own, but in verse 29 through 31, he was deeply disturbed. He warned everyone night and day with tears. He did not want god’s people to be led astray. How do you know that you have good leaders in the church? Is they out of great compassion for your spiritual maturity and for your spiritual protection that they warn you of false teachers.

I know that we don’t like confrontation and we don’t like disagreements, and so we just rather stay away from all that. We’d rather just say, hey, let’s just not get into the weeds or the details and let’s just love everybody. And that’s true, we should love everybody. But I want to remind you we have to have compassion, but we must have a compassion that is based upon the truth of God’s word. Sometimes the most loving thing you can do for someone is to tell them the truth.

Now in Philippians chapter three verse 18, it says, for many walk of whom I have told you often. And I now tell you even weeping that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ. There are false teachers out there, church. They’re sucking you into their false theology and they’re leading you astray and they’re giving you a pseudo religion that in the end, not only will it not save your soul, but it will wreck your faith. And I want you to keep that in mind.

It’s not that pastor’s up here and he’s a hate monger and he’s against everybody. I’m a kingdom guy. I’m for everybody that’s preaching the gospel. I’m for those that are lifting up Christ and teaching that Christ is the only way to heaven. Alright.

First is humility. Second is compassion. But third is faithfulness. I want you to go to verse 20 and verse 21. And he says, I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you and taught you publicly and from house to house.

Verse 21, testifying to the Jews and also to the Greeks, repentance towards God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Jump down to verse 27, for I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God. First, I want you to know that the apostle was faithful to God. He was faithful to the calling that God had upon his life. He was faithful.

He would not back down, but he was also faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ. He did not dilute the gospel. He did not make it more palatable. He did not in any way change the gospel. He taught the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and he taught that our response to the gospel is repentance and faith.

That we are to turn away from our sin and we are to turn towards God. I want you to see that he was faithful to the word of God. Verse 27, I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel God. You see, the apostle did not get up there and say, I just wanna give you the good stuff and leave out the bad stuff. We’ll always remember that the good is the good news is not as good without the bad news.

I mean, we wouldn’t understand the good news without the bad news. And the reason the good news is so good is because the bad news is so bad. And the bad news is that we are sinners in need of a savior. And it doesn’t matter how religious you are, and it doesn’t matter what list you’re trying to keep, unless you know Jesus Christ as your lord and savior. Jesus said in Matthew chapter seven that he’ll say to us, depart from me, you that work iniquity.

And they’ll say to him, but, lord, we did all these wonderful things in your name. And he’ll say, depart from me. The apostle encouraged all believers in second Corinthians chapter 13 verse five to test themselves to see if they are in the faith. Not everybody who walked an aisle or prayed a prayer or signed a card is a believer. Some do it just to get the preacher off their back or the parents off their back, but others do it with sincere hearts and are humble and really mean it.

Only you know. God knows, but you know. You can fool the pastor, you can fool the elders, you can fool your parents, and you can fool other church people, but you cannot fool God. The apostle was faithful to teach the word of God, the full gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray that all of us know Christ, believe in Christ.

As Paul is meeting with the elders, the church leaders for the last time, he’s heading to Jerusalem. This is where he will eventually be martyred. He’s headed to Jerusalem. He’ll never see them again, but what he is exemplifying to them is to be faithful to God, be faithful to the gospel, be faithful to the word of God. Listen, friends.

I know having a dozen donuts from Krispy Kreme every morning for breakfast sounds pretty exciting. But I’m telling you a consistent diet of Krispy Kreme donuts every morning is gonna be your downfall. And I know that you can go to a place where everything is wonderful and positive and things seem to be sensually in your emotions and your physical feelings to be so dynamic, but the gospel is never taught. The word of God is never taught, and you only get the highlights of the positive in the scripture and never have to mourn over your sin, and never have to wrestle with the changes God wants you to make in your life, and never have to confront your own attitudes. I know that’s a better, it seems, a life, but the truth is God wants you to be real with him, not a pretender.

And that’s why you need to be plugged in to not only a church that faithfully teaches the word of God, but you need to be plugged into a Bible study that teaches the word of God, a small group that teaches the word of God, and you need to stay faithful to these things in your life so that you can flourish for the lord and be on fire for him. The scriptures tell us in first Corinthians four two, it is required in stewards that one be found, what? Some translations put it trustworthy. I like that. That is the heart of the word is that we’re to be trusting.

What does it mean to be faithful? I think it means to be dependable. I think it means to be trustworthy. I think it means to be reliable. You and I are called to be faithful.

If we’re going to get this gospel to the ends of the earth, then we must be faithful to our brothers and sisters, and we must be faithful to our lord and savior, and we must be faithful to his word. I want you to be encouraged. God will reward you for you. I want you to be encouraged. God will reward you for using your talents faithfully for him.

God will reward you for your faithfulness. We’re told in the parable of talents that there are three different ways that he awards us. And I want you to keep this in mind. First is affirmation. He says, well done thou good and faithful servant.

Think about how many of God’s people that he has promoted to heaven in our church family. They got to hear those words of affirmation. Some of you have been living your life all your life to hear your parents say, good job. Proud of you. I’m sorry to hear that that it takes a whole lifetime or never that your parents would never affirm you.

I want you to know something. There is a God in heaven who does affirm you. And as you are faithfully serving him, he is saying, well done. Well done, good servant. Well done.

Not only will we be rewarded with affirmation, but we’ll be rewarded with promotion. The bible says that you have been faithful in a few things. I’ll put you in charge or a leader of many things. That’s the way God works. Your faithfulness here determines your reward and promotion in heaven.

That’s the way I kinda look at it. I feel like I’ll be in charge of all the golf courses in heaven. Not that I’m a good golfer, it’s just I’m willing to go out there and hack and hack and hack. But if we could just be faithful, I don’t know what God’ll put you in charge of in heaven. But if you would be faithful here, he’ll put you in charge of many things in heaven, and we can rejoice in that.

The third way he rewards our faithfulness is celebration. He says enter into the joy of your lord. I know it’s hard for us to comprehend and to imagine what heaven is like, but we get little glimpses in the bible. But I just want you to know in heaven that the psalmist describes it that in thy presence is fullness of joy, and at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore. And I kind of understand this in this way, that it’s not just that I’ll be filled with so much joy I can barely contain it, but I see it is that there will always be the fullness of this joy, that it’ll be perpetual, that now on this life that I have moments of great joy and that I have opportunities of great joy that fill my heart and flood my life, but that eventually dissipates.

But in heaven, all the time, joy. Is there anything more superb than us entering into the joy of our Lord? When you think of your loved ones in heaven, I know you get tired of me saying it, but I just want to help you. And that is that they didn’t get up there in heaven and say, man, I’m disappointed. I’m let down.

They came into those pearly gates into the presence of God and they are so filled with joy, they are so overwhelmed with the pleasures of heaven and the rewards and the blessings that God has bestowed upon them for their faithfulness on this earth, that if you begged them to come back, they would not. Because when you come back to this earth, it’s sorrow, sadness, suffering, separation. But in heaven, all those are gone and the former things are gone. All things, behold, are new before our god almighty. Paul was humble.

He was compassionate. He was faithful. Number four, he was submissive, submission. We talked a little bit about this, but let me just expand on this a little bit. In verse 22 of acts chapter 20, he says, and see now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem.

There’s an obligation upon the apostle. Not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except that the spirit testifies in every city saying that chains and tribulations await me. Let’s stop there. If I said to you, hey, I got a job for you and I just want you to know every day you’re gonna be thrown in jail, that every day there’ll be trials, that every day there’ll be so many problems, you’ll be frustrated. How many of you would line up and say, hey.

I want that job. But that’s what the spirit of God told the apostle. That’s what the spirit of God said and put upon him this responsibility and communicated to him, there would be chains and tribulations that await him. But look what his response is. None of these things move.

Many of you know and have heard of a great leader who’s now in heaven, his name was doctor Jerry Falwell. He started Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia. He was the founder of Liberty University. Many ministries for the homeless, for those who have addictions, for helping single moms, so many ministries that God used him to touch many people’s lives. But I remember hearing him preach at a pastor’s conference.

He said, the test of your character is what does it take to get you to quit. What does it take to get you to quit? Paul said none of these things move me. Are there people problems that you’ll quit on a dime for the Lord? Are there circumstances that if these things are true, I’m done.

I’m out. Are there situations in your life that if you face any trials and tribulations, then you’re tapping out. I wanna ask you a question. Why do you serve God? Do you serve God as long as he’ll answer your prayers the way you want them?

Do you serve God as long as he’ll do what you want, as long as he makes your life comfortable and convenient? Is that why you serve God? But what if he allows the storms to come? And what if he breaks your heart? Job said the Lord gives and he takes away.

What’s be the name? And I know we can serve God what he gives, but what if he takes away? Are you tapping out? Or are you willing to submit to God’s will? A true Christian is an example of submission.

Paul says I’m not being moved, I’m staying true to God. I’m gonna faithfully serve Him. I’m submitting to His will. You remember when Jesus gave that great high priestly prayer as he prayed to the father. He said in John seventeen one, father, the hour has come.

And what he was simply saying is, lord, I submit to you. I know that it’s time for me to go to the cross and be crucified. He didn’t walk away. He didn’t quit, but he prayed. And he prayed and he was submissive.

And God is calling us to be submissive. But I also want you to see finally is his devotion. We’re back in verse 24, which has always been a favorite verse of mine, and he says none of these things move me nor do I count my life dear to myself so that I may finish my race with joy and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. Paul remained true. He was devoted.

He remained true to the mission. Even in the midst of hardship, he had a single-minded devotion to God. It reminds me when he taught us in Romans twelve one, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. God’s people should hold nothing back. We should put it all on the line for him.

We should lay our lives out and say, lord, I’m a living sacrifice. I will not live for myself, but I will live for you. I will live to love you. I will live to love others. So unfortunate, but many people lack devotion to Jesus.

They are devoted to the world. They are devoted to sports. They are devoted to everything else that the world dangles before them, but they are not devoted to Christ. And I ask you, what are you ultimately devoted to? If we’re gonna carry this job out, church, we need devoted followers of Christ.

That just because there’s a challenge, a speed bump, just because there’s sorrow and struggles that we’re not gonna be tapping out and saying, I’m done, that we’re gonna keep moving forward. I’ve served in the ministry for over twenty five years. As a Christian, I’ve walked with the Lord for over forty years. I’ve lived through seasons of great joy and great struggle, and I have no doubt that you too will experience tough times as you serve the Lord. But I wanna remind you that ministry is not a 50 yard sprint.

It is a marathon. I want you to finish the race for the Lord. I want you to finish this race with joy. And I want you to know that your faithfulness matters. Your faithfulness matters to your family.

Your faithfulness matters to your church. Your faithfulness, most important, matters to God. May God bless us with a determination to carry the work of the gospel to the ends of the earth. Serving the Lord with all humility is one of the ways that we carry on the gospel, and people look at our lives, they see something distinct and different, and they want what we have. So, we’re called to be clothed with humility, and we make every effort to do that.

The apostle was a man of humility. He was a man of tears. He was a man who did whatever it took to reach people for Christ, and I hope that will be in your heart as well. We wanna thank you for being a part of this program again today, and we wanna encourage you to make sure you check us out on our YouTube channel. So we are broadcasting on YouTube on Sundays, and then also we have video clips of interviews and questions, q and a’s, and also our sermons, and even some different clips that you can use to help in growing and studying in your Christian faith.

So take advantage of that and check us out on YouTube channel. Like us, subscribe to us, and we know that it’ll be a great blessing. This is pastor Mike Sanders reminding you that in Christ, there is hope worth having.